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Wayne State officer shot said to be in 'grave' condition

Posted: Nov 23 2016 08:48AM EST

Updated: Nov 23 2016 11:13PM EST

DETROIT (WJBK) - A Wayne State University police officer who was shot while on patrol near campus in Detroit is recovering but his condition "looks very grave," Wayne State Police Chief Anthony Holt said at a news conference Wednesday morning.

Chief Holt says Officer Collin Rose is on heavy medication and on a ventilator in the hospital. Holt says he considers Rose to be on life support. Holt says Rose's parents and fiance are with him. Rose is engaged to be married in October 2017.

Rose, 29, was on duty around 6:30 p.m. Tuesday when he was shot. He was investigating possible thefts of navigation systems from cars when he radioed that he was about to speak to someone on a bike.

Rose was shot in the head during the stop at Brainard and Lincoln, an area off campus where Chief Holt says many students and some officers live.

Officers who arrived on the scene for backup found Rose injured on the ground. An officer immediately took Rose to the hospital, where he went into surgery.

Meanwhile, Tuesday night, several dozen armed officers engaged in a manhunt for the shooting suspect. They were looking in the residential area of Woodbridge, within two blocks of the campus.

According to a statement posted on the university's website, police were searching for an African-American man in his 40s with a full beard. It said he was wearing a white T-shirt with white and black lettering, a skull cap and a brown jacket.

A person of interest was taken into custody a few hours after the shooting. Holt says the man in custody is known to the department as a person with assault-type behaviors. Holt said Wednesday morning during the press conference that this man is indeed a suspect. You can watch a replay of the presser here.

Rose was not shot with his own gun, and authorities have offered a $5,000 reward for information that leads to the crime weapon. Call 1-888-ATF-TIPS if you know anything.

Wayne State President M. Roy Wilson says the last time a Wayne State officer was shot was 36 years ago. That officer was shot in the leg.

"Many of these officers are younger than 36, and they haven't dealt with something like this," Wilson said. "They have a lot to try to take in."

Rose is a 5-year veteran and worked as a canine handler. Chief Holt said Rose is one of the best canine handlers not only in the state, but probably in the country.

"He is a tremendous officer, very young, very pro-active," Holt said. "He is ingrained with the community, he reaches out to slain officer families all over the country. He is a very caring officer."